


Waiting On You

by Perfect_Insanity



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Daryl Dixon fluff - Freeform, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Protective Daryl Dixon, daryl dixon - Freeform, the walking dead - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-26
Updated: 2018-06-26
Packaged: 2019-05-28 19:11:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15055853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perfect_Insanity/pseuds/Perfect_Insanity
Summary: You've always had your eye on Daryl but it seemed he hasn't noticed you. But you've caught someone else's attention.





	Waiting On You

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again, 

Finding Alexandria had been a miracle, at least you thought so. Rick thought all these people were fools and didn’t know what they were doing. Daryl acted like a caged animal, refusing to speak to anyone outside the group. You kept close to Daryl as he’d been a bit more unpredictable lately. You knew he could snap at any second. He’d warmed up to you during your time together although you knew in your heart he’d never see you the same way you saw him. He treated you almost like a sister. But you just didn’t seem him like a brother, not even a little bit. Every time he grabbed your arm to lead you away from danger, every time his fingers brushed yours when he handed you something, every time you felt the warmth of his body when he went past you, your heart skipped a beat and you just wanted to grab him and kiss him. It was almost like an addiction. But you were pretty sure that you were hiding your feelings well. They would always be one sided so it was somewhat easy to keep your feelings a secret from him.

“I’m gonna get some supplies from the pantry,” you said, “Feel like we could use a nice dinner after the past few days that we’ve had. What do you think, Daryl?”

Daryl shrugged, “Wouldn’t be a terrible idea I guess.”

“Perfect,” you said, patting his firm arms, “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

You headed out, glancing at Daryl once more before you walked out the door. The fact that he would never see you as anything more than a friend broke your heart. You thought for a moment that maybe you should accept it and explore your options, invest your love in someone who would actually return it. But could you ever do that?

As you shut the front door behind you, you noticed Spencer, Deanna’s son walking past the house. He stopped as you walked down your porch steps and he smiled, “Hey, Y/N. How’re you doing this afternoon?”

“I’m doing fine,” you replied. He started walking again once you were beside him, “What’re you up to, Spencer?”

“Nothin’ much,” he said, “Just decided to take a walk. What about you? Where are you headed?”

“I was gonna see what I could scrounge up from the pantry for dinner tonight,” you explained, “Some of my people seem to be struggling to adjust.”

“But you’re not,” Spencer said, “I think that’s great, Y/N. Well, since you’re doing that tonight, what’re your plans tomorrow night?”

“Uh, I’m not sure, why?” you mumbled.

“Maybe you could have dinner at my house instead,” he said, “Get to know each other a little bit better.”

Spencer’s intentions were obvious and it was flattering that he wanted to spend time with you but he wasn’t your type. Sticking with your group seemed like the comfortable option and perhaps you should’ve been willing to move outside of that comfort zone. And you would, just not with him.

“That’s very sweet,” you said, “Maybe some other time. We’re still getting settled around here it’s just not the right time.”

Spencer’s shoulders slumped a little even though he was trying to hide the disappointment in his face, “Sure, sure.”

Maybe you hadn’t made your feelings clear enough because even though you were done with the exchange, he still followed you into the pantry, asking what you were thinking of making, showing you different items and making suggestions. And while his interest was nice, it was getting a little annoying. You just wanted to grab what you needed and he was prolonging the process.

He even walked you back to the house, though whatever he was saying to you was being tuned out at this point. Once you were back inside your house, he couldn’t bother you unless he decided to follow you there too.

“Well, this is me,” you said, gesturing to the house, “See you around, Spencer.”

“Maybe I could help you out in the kitchen,” Spencer said before you could even take two steps towards the house, “I always help my mom out when she cooks. Well, I used to before the world went to shit.”

“Right,” you mumbled, “Thank you for the offer, Spencer but I’m totally fine cooking by myself. It relaxes me.”

“Are you sure?” Spencer said.

The front door opened and Daryl stepped out, his brows lowered as he stared Spencer down, “What’s goin’ on out here?”

Spencer took a step away from you, “Just wanted to see if Y/N would need any help in the kitchen.”

“She don’t need your help,” Daryl snapped, “I think you should be headin’ home now. I can help Y/N from here.”

You fought the urge to smile triumphantly as Spencer walked away with his tail between his legs. You hurried into the house, setting your basket of items down on the kitchen counter as Daryl shut the door and followed you into the kitchen.

“You know you don’t have to actually help me,” you said with a warm smile, “That was just to get Spencer to leave, right?”

“Yeah but I figure might as well,” Daryl said, “Make it believable. I get that cooking ‘relaxes you’ and all that but I don’t mind…I dunno…cuttin’ up stuff or something.”

You looked through the basket, your lips pursed in thought. It warmed your heart that Daryl was actually willing to help her and it just made it that much more difficult to even attempt to get over him and move on.

“Let’s see, nothing to really cut,” you mumbled, “But, there’s plenty of other stuff to help me with. Much more exciting than cutting.”

It was so fun spending this time with Daryl. He liked to act as if he didn’t care but he seemed so interested in what you were doing and looked like he was really listening when you walked him through everything. He even helped you serve everyone once dinner was ready. At this point, you could never look at anyone else the same way. Every time you considered moving on, he just dragged you back in.

Spencer pretty much avoided you whenever Daryl was within earshot. When you were alone though, he pestered you every single time. After a while, Spencer started making you really nervous. Your continued rejection started somewhat annoying him, though he still smiled through gritted teeth. And it wasn’t exactly easy to avoid him. The community was small, surrounded by gates. And he knew where you lived.

“You’re sure you don’t need my help on this run?” you said, “I know I’m not much of a tracker but I could always learn, right? You could teach me.”

“Maybe I’ll teach you some other time,” Daryl said, “I won’t be gone more than two days, Y/N. Why’re you worrying?”

“It’s just…Spencer leaves me alone whenever you’re around,” you murmured, “I’d like to be away from him.”

“He put his hands on ya?” Daryl said, instantly tensing up like he was ready to start throwing punches. You were hesitant to answer as it felt that even a no wouldn’t make a difference, “Y/N! Did he?!”

“No!” you retorted, “He’s just getting…impatient I guess you could say.”

Daryl sighed as his body loosened, “Look, I’ll be back in two days, alright? Try not to leave the house too much. I’ll tell Rick and the others to keep an eye on you while I’m gone.”

“I didn’t know you cared so much,” you said, your cheeks burning red. Seeing Daryl’s protective side was nice even if it was just him being a friend.

Daryl grunted, “Anyways, I gotta get goin’. You just watch yourself, alright?”

“I will,” you sighed, “You be careful out there too. I want you coming back in one piece, ya hear?”

“Always do,” Daryl replied. You followed him to the front door with his bag in your hand. As he turned and took the bag from you, you grabbed him by the shoulders and leaned in to place a kiss on his cheek. Daryl was always quiet, never had much to say. But you’d never seen him at a loss for words before.

“Seriously,” you said, “Be careful.”

“Yeah, I uh…I…I will,” Daryl stuttered, clearing his throat. He adjusted his bag in his hand as he walked out, glancing back at you every now and then until he was completely out of sight. You instantly were filled with regret. You’d made everything weird and uncomfortable, hadn’t you? Daryl would never act the same way around you again, how could you have done something so carelessly?

Daryl promised to be back home in two days but by the fourth day, you were beginning to panic. He had to have gotten lost or hurt. Someone might’ve taken him or even worse, killed him. His body was lying in the middle of the woods somewhere being devoured by walkers. Plus, the longer he was gone, the more comfortable Spencer became approaching you and bothering you. Having the others around didn’t keep him away like you and Daryl had hoped they would.

Near the end of that fourth day, you were trying to distract yourself by reading a book but you found yourself rereading the same sentence over and over again. It was pointless but you forced yourself. If you didn’t, you’d go crazy and start thinking of the worst possible scenarios again and you definitely didn’t want to imagine Daryl dead or badly hurt somewhere.

There was a knock at the door and you were almost relieved. A visitor would surely take your mind off your worries. You opened the door without checking to see who it was, which turned out to be a big mistake. As soon as you opened the door, Spencer shoved his way through and shut the door behind him, leaning against it.

“Hey,” he said, “Wanted to see how you were doing.”

You gripped the back of the couch tightly, “I’ll feel better when Daryl is home.”

“But what if he doesn’t come back?” Spencer said, “That’d be awful, wouldn’t it?”

“It would actually,” you muttered, “Look, I’m not really in the best of moods right now. This isn’t a good time.”

Spencer frowned, “It’s never a good time, Y/N. When will it be a good time for you?”

“When Daryl is home safe and sound,” you snapped.

“He was safe before and it was still a bad time,” Spencer argued, “Why do you even waste your time on that guy? He doesn’t give you the damn time of day and still you ignore the guys that do wanna give you their attention.”

“I’m flattered that you like me,” you said, “Truly, I am. But that doesn’t mean I’m obligated to like you back. I just don’t feel that way about you, Spencer. I think…I think you should go. Before one of us says or does something we’ll regret.”

Spencer took a step closer, “You won’t even give me a chance, Y/N. How do you know you don’t like me if you don’t even give it a chance?”

“That would be wasting your time and mine,” you replied, glancing around the room for anything that could be used as a weapon. There wasn’t anything within reach so if things went south, you’d have to just run, “Wouldn’t you rather find someone that does like you in that way? Now please, just go.”

You tried pushing Spencer away from the door so you could open it but he stopped you by grabbing your arms and holding you close to him, “Why are you always pushing me away, Y/N?! Huh?!”

“Spencer, let me go,” you said firmly, trying to wiggle out of his tight grip. Spencer snarled under his breath as he shoved you to the ground. He pinned your arms down at each side of your head as his body hovered above yours. You couldn’t hide your terror now, trying to catch your breath as you whimpered, “What do you think you’re doing?! Let me go! Please let me go!”

He kissed along your jawline as you trembled underneath him. You couldn’t focus enough to think of a way out of this. Was this all you could do? Just lay there and wait for it to be over? Then what would you do? Would anyone believe you? What would your group do if you told them? Would you be able to take the anguish? Would he even let you live? The anger in Spencer’s eyes was so fiery and frightening, you weren’t sure what he would do next.

“Please,” you squeaked, “Let me go.”

You barely heard the front door open. You had completely zoned out in an attempt to numb yourself from what you feared Spencer would do. You couldn’t see or hear anything else around you. You barely felt Spencer’s weight being thrown off of you. You started slipping back into reality, hearing shouting and crashing from just a few feet away from you.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!” You knew that voice. Daryl. Daryl was back and he’d come back just in time. He had thrown Spencer into the wall which had knocked over an end table along with the picture frames and vase that sat on top of it. He was covered in dirt, sweat, and blood as he started punching Spencer mercilessly, “Make you feel good to overpower her?! Huh?!”

“Daryl, Daryl, stop,” you said softly. Daryl paused, looking back at you with a look you’d never seen before. He looked almost scared. You reached out and touched his shoulder, “I’m okay now, Daryl. He’s not worth it. Just let him go.”

“Fine,” Daryl scoffed. He helped Spencer onto his feet and shoved him towards the door, “Get the fuck outta here. You ever touch Y/N again and I won’t stop until you’re fucking dead, ya got it? Keep your fucking hands to yourself, you sick fuck.”

Spencer wiped his bloody nose on the back of his hand as he stumbled out, slightly disoriented. He slammed the door behind him as he left and you let out a sigh of relief, “I was so scared there for a second, Daryl. Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

“Don’t worry about me,” Daryl said, “I’m fine, just ran a little late that’s all. Did he hurt you at all?”

“Just a life-flashing-before-my-eyes kinda thing,” you said, “But no, he didn’t hurt me. But thank god you came when you did. I wasn’t sure what I was gonna do.”

“Don’t gotta worry about that now,” Daryl said. He grabbed you and pulled you in for a hug. He held onto the back of your head and his facial hair scratched your shoulder, “I got ya, Y/N. I know I fucked up bein’ late but…I’m here now.”

“You didn’t fuck up,” you mumbled, taking in his scent, “I’m just glad you’re back. In one piece like I asked.”

Daryl cracked a smile, pulling back a little to look into your eyes, “You’re a peach.”

“I’m just glad nothing’s changed,” you said, “After I kissed you, I thought…I thought I’d made things weird.”

“Why would you think that?”

“Because…I know my feelings are so one sided,” you mumbled, smoothing down the collar of his leather jacket, “But I just…made a bold move I guess.”

“It was ballsy,” Daryl said, “But, you don’t know shit, Y/N. You think your feelings are one sided, but they’re not.”

“What?” you gasped, “What did you just say?”

“You heard me,” Daryl retorted, “They’re not.”

A smile slowly spread on your lips and you squealed, throwing your arms around his neck, “You…you like me as much as I like you?”

Daryl nodded and you leaned forward, finally bringing your lips to his, the spark feeling almost like it was burning you but it was the best sensation. You’d imagined this scene a million times in your head but it was so much better than you had ever expected. His hands were gripping onto your waist as you held his face in your hands.

Daryl broke the kiss, peeking at you through his thin hair, “Probably like you more.”

“I doubt that,” you said. You pushed his hair away from his eyes and kissed the tip of his nose.

“We can fight all day about that,” Daryl said, “But do you really want to?”

This had all happened so fast, it was making your head spin. Daryl had been sitting on this for four days, not in discomfort, most likely in the same state of shock that you were in right now. Feeling like it was too good to be true. You were so glad that you’d never given up on him, that you stuck by him until this very moment. You didn’t feel so nervous, so afraid anymore. Was shit really falling together?


End file.
